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PUBG love story: Pakistani woman, Indian lover say only ‘death will do them part’

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RABPURA, INDIA: A Pakistani mom of four and her young Indian lover, who fell in love playing PUBG, a free-to-play battle royale video game, has said their bond was beyond international rivalries and they had no fears of any religious backlash and only ‘death would do them part’.

The love-struck couple from arch-rivals met in 2020 while playing the online shooting game PUBG during the coronavirus pandemic.

“We became friends and our friendship turned to love and our chats became longer — every morning and night — before we finally decided to meet,” said 27-year-old Seema Haider, who is a married Pakistani and a Muslim. 

The mother of four spoke to AFP from the cramped courtyard of a two-room house of her new husband, Sachin Meena, 22, an unmarried Indian shopkeeping assistant and a Hindu,

Seema, who left Pakistan and her husband with her four children by smuggling herself into India via Nepal in May — for which the couple were arrested then bailed out last week — said she has since married Sachin and taken his name.

“I’d rather die than return or leave Sachin,” she said, sitting next to Sachin in the village of Rabupura, where she now lives.

While the couple has found each other, the history of their respective nations is bitter.

Pakistan and India, both nuclear-armed nations, have fought three wars since being carved out of the subcontinent in 1947.

Each expelled the other’s high commissioner in 2019, and limited bilateral diplomatic, cultural, business and sporting links to almost zero.

Indian police insist that Seema’s long-term stay will be impossible.

“I request the Indian government to grant me citizenship”, Seema pleaded, a red headscarf covering her hair and her four young children playing nearby.

‘Destined’

Seema’s proclamation of “undying love” for Sachin and a promise to only return to Pakistan “as a dead woman” when they featured on a raucous Indian TV debate this week.

Seema said she had been first attracted by Sachin’s gaming skills.

Three years later, the couple met in person in March in Nepal.

She became sure about leaving her “abusive” Pakistani husband —charges he denies — after the first meeting.

The couple said it took months of meticulous planning with help from YouTube videos on how to enter India via Nepal. In May, she succeeded.

“It was very difficult to travel from Pakistan to India,” she said. “I believe that with God’s love, we were destined to meet”.

Sachin’s family only learned of her existence when he rented a nearby apartment with her.

“There was some resistance, but my father and everyone accepted us. They are happy for us,” said Sachin. “I will do everything for them.”

Indian police found out after they tried to get married at a local court.

‘Still my family’

Seema’s estranged husband, Ghulam Haider, left his job as a labourer and rickshaw driver to earn more money for his family in Saudi Arabia.

Haider, who said he had not heard of PUBG, wants his family back.

“I earnestly appeal to Indian and Pakistani authorities to bring my wife and children back to me,” Ghulam Haider told AFP by phone from Saudi Arabia.

Haider said the couple, from different Baloch tribes, have a defiant love story of their own.

Forbidden by their families from marrying, they ran away to get hitched — a taboo in Pakistan that can sometimes lead to so-called honour killings.

“Later, a jirga (council of elders) was summoned to settle the matter and a fine of one million rupees (around $3,640) was slapped on me,” he said.

“I am far from my home, from my family, and it is very agonising for me because we married out of love.”

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Microsoft and BlackRock are set to establish a $30 billion fund for artificial intelligence infrastructure.

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AI models, particularly those employed in deep learning and extensive data processing, necessitate considerable computer power, resulting in increased energy usage.

The computational demands of AI have compelled technology firms to interconnect thousands of chips in clusters to attain the requisite data processing capacity, resulting in a significant increase in the demand for specialized data centers.

The investment entity, termed Global AI Infrastructure Investment Partnership, seeks to improve AI supply chains and energy procurement, according to BlackRock and Microsoft.

MGX, the investment firm supported by Abu Dhabi, will serve as a general partner in the fund, while Nvidia (NVDA.O), a manufacturer of AI chips, will provide its expertise.

The collaboration is expected to generate a total investment potential of up to $100 billion, inclusive of loan funding, according to the corporations.

The investments will primarily be in the United States, with the remainder allocated to partner countries, as stated by the firms.

The Financial Times initially reported on the development.

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The price of gold declines in Pakistan.

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The price of 10 grams of 24 karat gold declined by Rs. 257, falling to Rs. 229,510 from Rs. 229,767, while the price of 10 grams of 22 carat gold reduced to Rs. 210,384 from Rs. 210,620, according to the All Sindh Sarafa Jewellers Association.

The prices of per tola and ten-gram silver remained constant at Rs.2,950 and Rs.2,529.14, respectively.

The Association reported a decline in the international gold price by $18, falling from $2,587 to $2,569.

On September 16, gold prices in Pakistan continued to rise, reflecting the increase in the international market, as reported by the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA).

The local market witnessed a surge in the price of gold per tola, increasing by Rs1,700 to reach Rs268,000. Likewise, 10-gram gold was transacted at Rs229,767 following a rise of Rs1,458.

Simultaneously, the global rate was noted at $2,587 per ounce, while silver prices remained consistent at Rs2,950 per tola.

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Prior to the Lahore demonstration, PTI seeks LHC against arrests.

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The petition requesting protection against the arrests of its workers and leaders prior to the event set for September 21 was submitted by Sheikh Imtiaz and Yasir Gillani.

The petition asserted that law enforcement is apprehending party members throughout Punjab, infringing upon their fundamental right to assemble for a rally.

The petitioners sought a court order to compel the authorities to cease arrests and for the march to occur peacefully.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf is set to have a demonstration in Lahore on September 21.

Previously, multiple PTI MNAs, including party chairman Barrister Gohar, were apprehended by Islamabad police subsequent to the Sangjani demonstration in Islamabad.

Barrister Gohar and Sher Afzal Marwat were apprehended outside, while Zain Qureshi and Sheikh Waqas Akram were detained within the Parliament House.

Furthermore, law enforcement apprehended Owais Ahmed Chatha, Syed Shah Ahmed, Sahibzada Hamid Raza of the Sunni Ittehad Council, Yousaf Khan, Maulana Naseem Shah, and Ahmed Shah Khattak.

Sources indicated that Speaker of the National Assembly Ayaz Sadiq permitted the detention of PTI Members of the National Assembly outside the premises of the house. The situation occurred after police submitted a copy of the FIR filed against the PTI legislators for breaching SOPs during the public protest on September 8.

Furthermore, three complaints have been filed in Islamabad under the Peaceful Assembly and Public Order Bill, alleging breaches of the event’s NOC. The FIR identifies 28 individuals, including PTI officials Barrister Gohar Ali, Sher Afzal Marwat, Shoaib Shaheen, Omar Gul, Zartaj Gul, Aamir Mughal, Seemabia Tahir, and Raja Basharat.

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